15 female tech stars embark on mission to Silicon Valley

15 of the UK’s fastest-growing woman-led technology firms will embark on a trade mission to Silicon Valley next month, organised by Silicon Valley Comes to the UK (SVC2UK) and the Mayor’s International Business Programme.

Launching on 19 June, the three day-mission will give its female founders the chance to learn from US entrepreneurs about scaling globally, meet with potential partners and customers, and seek investment.

The mission will be led by SVC2UK founder Sherry Coutu and 2012 Young Gun Rajesh Agrawal – the chairman of London & Partners – and will meet the likes of Apple, Instagram, Square and GoogleX.

Kid safe internet app Azoomee – one of Startups’ top businesses of 2016 – all-in-one app for mums Baby2Body, food sharing app OLIO<, and Startups 100 featured property technology (proptech) firm Settled are just some of the companies attending the trade mission. The participants are growing at an average of 115% annually.

The announcement coincides with research from Founders4Schools, estimating that women-led businesses generated more than £3bn for the UK’s economy over the last 12 months. It also revealed there are 871 companies headed by women in the UK, growing at a median rate of 28% annually and turning over £250m.

The full list of companies attending the SVC2UK trade mission is:

• Azoomee
• Baby2Body
• Century Tech
• Eporta
• Luxtripper
• Mr & Mrs Smith Hotels
• Mrs Wordsmith
• Mush
• Nurole
• OLIO
• Opportunity Network
• Outcomes Based Healthcare
• Pivigo
• Raremark
• Settled

Agrawal said: “London is one of the world’s most successful tech ecosystems, and shares many strengths with Silicon Valley: creativity, innovation, entrepreneurship. These female tech pioneers personify these qualities.

“I look forward to helping them maximise their investment and networking opportunities in North America, contributing to London’s economic prosperity.”

Gemma Young, CEO and founder of Settled, said: “In strengthening connections between London and Silicon Valley, our opportunities become more and more global. We’re excited to be part of that mission; to continue to be a part of London’s wonderful tech hub and most of all; to be a part of the next generation of global businesses created in London.”